Gá, the secret sanctuary
by sanctuary fan
Summary: The introduction to an old facility that only Helen knows about and where she finds her peace after Ashley's death. During her visit, Helen helps out with a new case. Please review.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1. Introduction

Ashley was gone, her work was still here, a very painful trade. It's been two week since Helen Magnus has lost her daughter and she seemed to be fine. Everyone at the Sanctuary knew that was a mask, but nobody confronted her, not even Will. She deserved to grief in her own way. Still, it wasn't just a mask, she felt nothing but a big void inside her, she couldn't cry, she couldn't think about Ashley as being dead, she couldn't grief. One day she just announced everybody that she was taking a couple of days off and gave them brief instructions. She was needed somewhere else. That was it, simple and without further explanations, she just left.

The Irish country side was astonishing all year long, the people, the scenery, the customes. Thlasa loved it and cherished it, it was her real home. The facility she had been leading for 15 years fitted perfectly into the scenery at first sight. At a closer view, it seemed like a military base with strict rules of conduct and action. It was founded in 1967 by Helen Magnus and the other Sanctuary leaders out of necessity and was functioning independently supporting the Sanctuaries around the world. It's objective was to capture the most dangerous human abnormals world wide (abnormals using their abilities to torture and kill, to change governments and threaten the social equilibrium of a community), study them and, finally, put them down. These abnormals couldn't be brought to answer for their crimes before a customary court without people knowing of their existance and create world wide panic, so it was the only way to punish them. This facility was created to answer a condition imposed by the governments to allow the Sanctuaries to function in their countries. It broke all of Helen Magnus' principles, but in order to continue her work she had to obey.

The year 1967 was a bad one for the Sanctuary network. In june that year, The Council of the European Union issued a regulation about the classification, packing and labeling of dangerous substances. A faction of human abnormals tried to assassinate members of the Council from every member states in order to force the European Council to reconsider the regulation. The attacks were stopped, but the governments of the member states urged the Santuary network to deal with any further problems of that kind in a more... persuasive way than research and shelter or imprisonment.

Therefor, that year, Helen and the other Sanctuary leaders set up an establishment on the Irish coast called Gá (Need in Irish), a new tipe of sanctuary, this time a sanctuary for humans only, to protect them from dangerous beings. It was a hard decision to take, because the main role of the sanctuaries was to protect abnormals and learn from them. But, in order to do that and keep the two dominant species on the planet save, she had to comply. Still, sanctuaries had had directives from the begining to put down any abnormal considered too dangerous, but it hadn't quite applied to human abnormals. So, Gá completed in a strange sense the primary goal of the Sanctuary Network. The Sanctuary Council decided unanimously that Gá would remain a secret for all other sanctuary members.

Because of the high risk level of assignments that Gá personnel had to take, the facility had been thought up more as a military base: harder trainning programms with constant physical and psychological evaluations, more strict chain of command. That was the only way to assure the survival of all the members of Gá, because safety had always been the first concern. After a decade since Gá was created and governments eased the preasure on the sanctuaries, they started to try to cure abnormals' deviant behaviour rather then putting them down, with some degree of success. Still, the ones that they couldn't cure were killed. Thlasa was leading Gá since 1995following the same rules, but bringing a new meaning of belonging to the members through her ability.

Helen had known Thlasa since 1942. Thlasa was 16 years old, running from an organisation called The Division which Helen had been trying to bring down for almost 2 years. The Division was created by former members of the Irish Republican Army and collected human abnormals to use their powers against the british. They succesfully collected humans with mind reading abilities, visual manipulation abilities, shape shifters. Thlasa was an empath whom The Division wanted to use as a human lie detector. She managed to escape badly wounded and hid in a small village near Cork. Helen tracked her down and saved her life in the only possible way: she injected her own blood into the girl to raise her immun system. Thlasa survived and gained Helen's longevity. She worked with Helen at the Sanctuary, raised Asley and Henry together. Her ability was a real asset for the Sanctuary network. She could connect to another person and feel what that person was feeling and even give comfort by soothing negative feelings. She had learned to only use that ability when needed and not constantly like in the begining when she would feel everything the others around her felt, good or bad feelings and she was on the verge of psychological collapse.

The two women's relationship was more than anyone could understand, Thlasa was Helen's support and comfort, she could feel Helen's state of mind, share it with her and even take some of Helen's pain and dispear on her. That was her way of thanking Helen for saving her life. Through the years, the link between them became permanent, it wasn't dependent of space proximity anymore.

The day Helen arrived in Ireland turned out to be in perfect harmony with her state of mind. The sky was black and it was raining hard. She liked that weather, she felt comfortable, it remainded her of the all the times she had spent on the roof of her Sanctuary watching the city, especially during the rain, then it was strangely quiet.

She got out of her rented car to look at the old castel that hid inside the most dangerous human abnormals on the planet. She knew that a division of Gá was currently bringing down the Cabal, folowing Druitt and Tesla and finishing the job without the two of them knowing and for the first time she felt (with shame) that the facility was doing exactly what she herself wanted to be doing.

Thlasa was waiting for her at the front door, Helen was sure her friend knew she was coming. They hugged for a long time in the rain, sharing Helen's pain. No words were said, they didn't need to. Thlasa knew the huge degree of pain Helen was feeling for her daughter's death and even felt it herself since before Helen got there. But, still, Thlasa didn't expect the way Helen was feeling. It was like she was numb inside, powerless to face what had happened. She looked into Helen's blue eyes and smiled sadly. That's why Helen came here, because she knew no one would understand what she was feeling and she couldn't find the words to explain, nor the power. Thlasa could feel her and she could share her state of mind.

Later that day, Helen and Thlasa were drinking a botle of wine in Thlasa's private quarters.

"I've heard you have a difficult case" Helen was the first to speak.

"Shape shifter... nasty one and highly intelligent, he impersonated the Bank of Ireland senior manager and almost succeded on stealing 14 millions € until we caught on to him. But he eluded us again...". Thlasa knew her answer was hazy, but it was just like Helen to divert her attention from personal problems to work. "I'll give you the details tomorrow morning and maybe you'll want to give us a hand while you're here".

Helen poured herself more wine and picked up Thlasa's glass to do the same.

"I've been expecting you sooner" Thlasa said and looked at her glass. "I thought you'd come six days ago, I felt your pain stronger then. Was the memorial then?"

Helen smiled sadly. "I thought you might not come then. Still I wanted you there so much. Was it too much for you? I know Ashley meant a lot to you too." She said and looked at Thlasa. Her eyes held no reproach. She understood.

"I wanted to come, for you, but I felt you at every moment. I can still do that, you know, even after 14 years of talking to you on the phone" Thlasa smiled and looked at Helen intensly. "I know you understand, you studied my ablility alongside myself, you taught me to control and develop it. I couldn't bear your pain then and I couldn't comfort you, so I... I couldn't have helped you then. I hope I can at least now." She took Helen's hand into her and opened her mind completely to the other woman's feelings. The pain and despair flooded through her, filling her senses and clouding her mind. It was too intense for a person to endure alone, so Thlasa took away some of that pain and made it hers, it burnt her soul and tears started running down her cheeks. For the first time after the day Ashley had died, Helen was also crying, the way that only a mother would cry for her dead child. She was finally in someone's company, someone who understood how she felt without having to find the words to express it.

Thlasa was her best kept secret, her only egocentric side, her tranquility. She wasn't about to let anyone take that away from her, at least not again, not like 16 years ago.

To be continued

Thank you for reading, please review.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2. Leaving the Sanctuary

It was a rainy day in the spring of 1994. The Sanctuary was rumbling, there was a security breach attempt. Michael, the tech support man, was trying to determine the damage to the security system, while everyone else were checking every abnormal in the house. The SHU was unbreached. Helen was in UK visiting the British Sanctuary and took the first plane home. Thlasa was in charge coordinating the security team from Helen's office keeping a close eye on little Ashley and Henry. The Big Guy informed her that someone tried to breach the EM shield when all of a sudden the power went off. There was a flash of red light and Thlasa was gone.

Helen looked for her, talked to every contact on the street, pulled every string at her disposal. No one knew anything and all efforts turned out to be in vain.

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"Mum, where did aunt Thlasa go? Is she staying long?" Ashley asked Helen looking at her with big questioning eyes. Henry was crying on the sofa.

"Aunt Thlasa had to leave for a while." Helen hated lying to the kids but she had no other option. "She will come back as soon as she takes care of her business".

The Big Guy came in

"Helen, your presence is required in the tech lab. Michael finished uploading the pictures from the security cameras". The Big Guy looked straight into Helen's eyes and she instantly knew she would not like what she was about to see.

Michael showed her the pictures and Helen's face decomposed. On the screen was John Druitt at the gate.

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Two hours later, Thlasa woke up and felt blood dripping from her lips. Her whole body was aching. She remembered fighting Druitt, but that was something with little chance of winning. The last thing she remembered was being pushed into a wall and hitting her head. She was tied to a chair in a dark and cold room. Suddenly, a wave of hate took stock on her. She felt Druitt and instantly became aware of his presence. He had been waiting for her to wake up and had a big grin plastered on his faced.

"I expected more from you, I thought Helen trained you better", he spoke in a cold and yet vain tone.

"Untie me then, maybe I'll live up to your expectations this time", said Thlasa completely aware of the fact that her body could not stand another beating, but she had nothing to lose.

"I will let you regain some of your strength first; otherwise it would be completely ungentlemanly on my part. We have enough time on our part".

Druitt took a seat in front of her.

"For now just feel me. Feel what Helen had done to me decades ago. Do you think shooting your lover can be considered as a declaration of one's love? She promised she would help me".

Thlasa was constantly feeling his hate and anger creeping through her mind and entire body. It was stronger than she had ever felt before from humans or abnormals. How could someone live with such dark feelings? She knew she certainly could not.

"What do you want from me?"

"You'll know when time comes".

The days were passing slowly. Thlasa was more and more tired of fighting off Druitt's feelings, until she began to let them take hold of her. Druitt untied her from time to time and offered her the possibility to leave if she fought him and won. One time she almost did using his own rage that she felt and letting it drive her moves. That was when he stabbed her with his knife. He let her bleed on the floor and gloated above her.

"You need more to fight you enemies than what Helen had thought you. You must want to kill them to win, instead she thought you how to capture alive. That is why you will never get out of here because killing me is your only option and you cannot kill one of The Five. On the other hand, is it that you cannot kill me because of Helen? Does she still miss me? Answer me!" he yelled and hit Thlasa in the gut with his foot. The woman started coughing up blood.

"You are of no use to me yet, we will try again later". Druitt picked her up from the floor and tended to her wounds, he needed her alive.

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Sixteen days had passed since Druitt kidnapped Thlasa and Helen was no closer to finding her. She had rarely slept, talking to everyone who might have known something, but she was aware of the fact that Druitt was not an easy man to find. She tried not to give up hope, but she feared Thlasa was lying dead somewhere. She had people who constantly checked hospitals and the city morgue for Jane Does. However, until she found Thlasa alive or dead she would not give up. She just hoped Thlasa could feel that she did not give up on her.

The Big Guy entered Helen's office and brought dinner.

"Ashley missed you at dinner, she wanted to come and ask you if you can tack her in tonight".

"I will go right away". Helen looked at the Big Guy. "Thank you, my old friend".

The Big Guy grunted and left the room.

Helen entered Ashley's room and sat on her bed.

"Are you all right, mummy?"

Helen smiled and kissed her daughter's forehead. It wasn't Ashley's job to worry about her mother, it was supposed to be the other way around.

"Of course my sweet. I am sorry I couldn't spend more time with you, but I am here now and I will try to make it up to you in a couple of days"

"Are you trying to help aunt Thlasa with her problem?"

"Yes, I am, my darling"

"Then it's fine mummy because she'll come back sooner, right?"

"Yes, Ashley" said Helen and laid in bed next to her daughter. "I'll hold you until you go to sleep"

"I love you, mummy"

Helen hugged her daughter and smiled. Ashley was her peace of mind

"I love you too. Now sleep darling".

After half an hour, Helen got off from Ashley's bed who was already dreaming and went to check up on Henry. He was sleeping so she caressed his cheek and kissed his forehead. She was glad that the children were not aware of Thlasa's situation. They both considered her part of the family.

Helen went to see Sally, the mermaid. Sally chose to stay at the Sanctuary a couple of years ago after Helen rescued her from the people that destroyed the mermaid's colony. She was expecting Helen that night and smiled at the woman's sight.

Helen got close to Sally's tank and placed a hand on the glass.

"You're upset". Helen heard Sally's word in her head.

"Yes I am, Sally", said Helen aloud.

"You will find her, Helen. You have to believe that"

"It's very hard after all this time. I am afraid of what he has done to her. I know what he is capable of"

"Do you want to take a swim, Helen? It will help clear your mind."

Helen smiled. Swimming with Sally was a unique experience.

"Yes, I do."

Two days later one of the Sanctuary's contacts came through for them. Someone spotted Druitt in the East side of the city close to an abandoned storehouse. Helen organized a team and gave them brief instruction on how to deal with an encounter with Druitt. She wasn't even sure what to tell them because her last encounters with him were less than unfortunate.

"Do whatever is necessary to protect yourself and your colleagues" was the last thing Helen said knowing that the chances of apprehending someone with the ability to teleport were slim.

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Druitt took a long look at Thlasa. He hoped she would break sooner, but he gave Helen the credit of knowing what people to choose to be around her. Thlasa mastered her abilities better than he expected, still he saw progress in her. His work was almost complete.

"You still hope Helen will come to your rescue?"

Thlasa gave him a cold look.

"Are you making conversation now?" Her whole body was aching, she couldn't even think straight. She felt anger, hate, disappointment and she didn't know anymore if it came from her or from him. She didn't care…

Druitt gave her a smirk.

"I will be leaving now, Helen finally found me. Send her my love". Then he kissed Thlasa roughly. "I like the sent of your blood. I have always anticipated it on my victims". He hit her again and disappeared in a red flash of light.

About ten minutes later the Sanctuary team came in and untied her. Helen kneeled in front of her and hugged her. Thlasa didn't respond. Helen then checked Thlasa's wounds with a horrified look on her face.

"Can you move?" asked Helen.

"No!" came the answer.

Thlasa's eyes gave away nothing except pain, no sign of relief of being found. Still 18 days of apparently being tortured were enough to love your hope of being rescued, Helen thought.

"All clear, no sign of Druitt" said a man behind them.

"Regroup and head to the Sanctuary. We need to get her to the infirmary", Helen ordered and two men picked Thlasa in their arms. Helen stayed back and looked at the room: empty except for a single chair, cold, blood on the floor, she guessed Thlasa's. It was in complete resonance with Druitt's dark side. Helen's heart broke again…

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Two weeks later, Thlasa was still in the infirmary with scars all over her body. She didn't speak much during her recovery and Helen didn't insist.

"How are you feeling today?" Helen asked Thlasa when she came in to change her bandages.

"Better."

"Do you want to talk, you have shut yourself off for far too long", tried Helen to open a conversation. She had noticed from the beginning the cold look on Thlasa's eyes.

"Now is not the time, Helen, maybe another day".

"As you wish".

After a long recovery period, Thlasa went to Helen's office.

"I just wanted to thank you for your care," she said bluntly.

Helen looked at her. The coldness in Thlasa's eyes was still there.

"I am sorry I exposed you to all of this. I should have founded you faster. This is my fault". Helen got up from her seat and got closer to Thlasa. The other woman took a step back and Helen stopped.

"Helen, I need time away from all of this, I can't clear my mind…"

"Do you need time away from me?" Helen asked trying to hide the shiver in her voice.

"I will always feel you Helen, but I don't feel myself anymore. I need to know who I am, I need to feel me again, and I am certain I cannot do it here. Please understand"

"Where will you go?"

"Home, Ireland, I am still connected to that place"

"Will you be coming back one day?"

Thlasa smiled. "If you ever set up a Sanctuary in Ireland let me know." That said Thlasa turned around and left. Helen remained standing for a while. A Sanctuary in Ireland? Thlasa didn't know it already existed. It was clear than that Thlasa didn't want to continue their relationship the way it was before Druitt. She didn't understand, she knew Druitt kidnapped Thlasa because of her, to hurt her but why didn't he kill her? Maybe driving the two women away was more painful than having Helen living with the guilt of Thlasa's death. He succeeded once again to shatter her life…

Helen took the photo of her and Thlasa that she had on her desk and placed it on the fireplace next to photos of her and people encounter along her life, people long dead. It was her way to remember that she met extraordinary people who were long gone from her life. Thlasa became one of them…

To be continued

Please review


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3. New mission

Part 1.

"So, about your new case, do you need some help while I'm still here?"

Thlasa wasn't surprised to find Helen in her office so early in the morning drinking her tea. _Some things never change_ she thought.

"Planning to leave so soon or are you getting bored just relaxing without abnormals on your mind?" Thlasa asked while pouring herself a cup of coffee. She looked at Helen: business clothes with a sexy turn, hair and makeup perfect, smooth skin, refreshed look. No one would think that woman has just lost her daughter. That was the way Helen preferred things, and over the years became an obsession. Showing pain meant weakness and the head of the Sanctuary Network couldn't be less than composed and powerful. But her heart was bleeding inside.

"No one expects you to perform at 100%. You are allowed to mourn"

"It is simpler this way for everybody. So stop analyzing me and tell me about the case".

Thlasa sat down at her office and opened a file.

"The shape shifter belongs to a remote community living in the southern coast. We talked to them and they feel offended by the one who chose to disobey their way of life about six months ago. His name is Comhghán, which means born together. He has a twin sister, Neasa who went after him to try to convince him to return to the old ways. Our best way to find him is to find his sister. Therefore, we are focusing on retracing her steps, which isn't easy because she doesn't use credit cards or cell phones. I think she bases her search on her instincts as a twin to find her brother. Our ethnologists are studying the development and culture of the shape shifter's community, maybe we find a way to reach out to her."

"Yes, it's a good start. What can I do to help?" Helen respected Thlasa's authority in running Gá, so she deciding in following her lead.

"I could use another person on the field showing photos of Neasa to people in dinners and motels. She doesn't change her appearance like her brother. The shape shifters community believes that taking someone else's appearance means losing your own identity so they use their skills only in self defense."

"Understood. I will need a ride"

"O'Shea and Carson will ride with you at your designated places. Report in every hour".

Thlasa felt weird giving orders to Helen, but for once she enjoyed it. How many people can say they ordered Helen Magnus around and got away with it?

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Helen liked wandering the streets in search of abnormals. It was frustrating but extremely rewarding when she found her target. She sometimes preferred action rather than research, but back at the Sanctuary she was more useful in the lab than outside. This job was refreshing and succeeded in keeping her mind busy from thinking of Ashley.

Six hours later there was no good news. Reports from all team came out empty, no one has seen Neasa. All personnel were asked to return to Gá. They decided it was best to rely their intel on informants.

"Our ethnologists made up a profile of the shape shifters. They were always a peaceful race, passing on their way of life to their offspring. Something must have happened to Comhghán to deny their way of living. It is true that he hasn't hurt anyone so far, but we can't be sure he wouldn't do it in the future. We are continuing to monitor the police frequency and awaiting some news from our informants. Tomorrow we'll be in the streets again."

That said everybody returned to their work. Thlasa was visibly disappointed by the turn events had taken.

"You still can't accept the fact that some days are not as fulfilling as others" Helen told Thlasa watching her walk all over the office.

"As if you can. I've watched you so many times fret about finding solutions when there were none. I believe I was the one who tried to calm you down only to end up wrapped up in the same frenzy." Thlasa quickly answered back.

Helen smiled; Thlasa was the only person daring enough to talk back to her. She took a moment to look at the restless woman marching in front of her. Thlasa seemed to be in her 30's, a beautiful redhead with long straight hair, about the same height as Magnus, a little thinner, with vivid green eyes and pale skin which turned into a pinkish shade only when she was mad. Thlasa had a fiery Irish temper, which she had trained herself not to show except in rare occasions, she did everything with passion. Magnus could recognize in Ashley traits that came from Thlasa, which sometimes infuriated her, but most of the times loved them.

"I hate waiting" Thlasa said mostly to herself.

"Something always turns up; you just have to be patient." Helen tried to encourage her.

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The next day Neasa was spotted at a motel downtown. A couple of hours later, she arrived at Gá, escorted by two personnel members.

"Hello, my name is Thlasa Doyle and this is doctor Helen Magnus."

"From the Sanctuary?" asked Neasa

"You have heard of us." Magnus said with a smile

"Yes, my family told me of a woman who protected people like us, but I thought the Sanctuary was in England."

"You are right. This is a different Sanctuary branch."

"Neasa, we need to find your brother before he gets into more trouble than he already is in and before he hurts somebody" Thlasa intervened.

"Comhghán wouldn't hurt anybody. He is a good man." Neasa became defensive.

"We believe you", Thlasa said in a lower voice "but he tried to steal money and the authorities are looking for him. It is best that we find him first."

"We won't harm your brother. You have my word." Magnus reassured Neasa. "Let us help you find him"

"I don't know where he is, I don't know how to find him, I've been trying for months now."

"You can help by telling us about him, about his interests and why he left the community."

"My brother argued with the elders about our way of life. He has always been interested in the modern world; he decided he would fit in better with the people outside of our community. He is a very smart man. I think he just wants to prove that he can be more than any of us. He told me one day that people would hear about him and everybody would speak his name. He never understood why we don't use our powers to make ourselves know."

"Neasa, we need a way to recognize him when he takes another person's form. I believe you can help us with that" said Magnus.

"How?"

"Will you be so kind to allow us to perform a CAT scan on your brain? You and your brother are identical twins with the same power, so his brain signature should match yours." Magnus' face lit up.

"Helen, what are you thinking about?" asked Thlasa

"Shape shifters use the hypothalamus' functions to change form. Every abnormal has a distinctive brain signature for that region. I believe we can insert that signature into a scanner, a sort of a mobile CAT scan. All we need to do now is Comhghán next move and where we can find him."

"Easy…" joked Thlasa, "you were right, something does turn up every time."

"Neasa, will you help us?"

"You won't hurt him?"

"We'll do our best to ensure his safety, I promise you"

"Then I agree."

To be continued.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4. New mission

Part 2.

A couple of days later, Neasa's tests results came back and the mobile CAT scanner plan was in progress. Technicians were working around the clock to finish the design and test the device's utility. All that remained was to find Comhghán's location or the figure out his next step.

"Piece of cake" said Thlasa out loud.

Helen understood her frustration, she also felt it. How could someone find a shape shifter? Or anticipate what he was planning to do? Thlasa had been trying to connect mentally with Comhghán, but had succeeded nothing because of the lack of physical proximity.

"You try too hard" Helen couldn't help but state the obvious.

"I don't know what else to do. I've tried focusing on his profile and picture. I've opened up my mind further then ever before. I can sense the city's rumble, the mix of everyone's feelings, but I can't lock my mind on him. I can't find him. I feel ambitions and dreams, most of them are scary…" Thlasa couldn't take failure well, but, on the other hand who could?

"Have you tried focusing on Neasa? She might be of help to you; at least she could help you understand her brother better."

"I didn't want to put her through that. People don't enjoy having their feelings probed."

"Ask her, it's worth a shot."

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Neasa accepted Thlasa's request in hope of finding her brother. Helen's reassurances that they would do everything to keep Comhghán safe had convinced her. She and Thlasa were standing in one of Gá's quarters in a calming atmosphere. Thlasa hold Neasa's hand and advised her to relax and think of her brother. Neasa's feelings started to flood Thlasa: happiness, sadness, anger, and fulfillment.

"Tell me about your brother, about the times he made you happy."

"As we were growing up he was very protective. He would tend to my every injury. Comhghán was very proud to be a brother."

"What about the times he made you sad?"

"A few months before he ran away, he had talked about getting bored of hiding our powers and people needing to know about us. He was very determined to make himself known to the world, but he didn't even take into consideration the fact that telling the world about himself would affect all our lives. He is so stubborn!"

"What did he like to do?"

Neasa thought for a moment and smiled.

"He loved to watch Glenn Beck's shows and always impersonated him at dinner. That made our parents mad. He believed people like Glenn Beck held the most power over others; Comhghán was impressed by the way Beck influenced the audience and made them listen to him. I used to tell him that it was just a show, but he kept contradicting me and told me I know nothing about the real world."

"That's very good, Neasa" said Thlasa and continued "it will be enough for now".

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"So what do you think?" Helen asked.

"I'm told that Glenn Beck is making a public appearance in Dublin on O'Connell Street in front of the monument the day after tomorrow to speak about moral values and lifestyle. I believe we should also attend."

"Yes, I believe you are right." Magnus approved. "The mobile CAT scanner is ready, we just need someone to test it on. We should take Neasa with us, maybe Comhghán will remain peaceful when seeing her."

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Two days later, Neasa, the Gá team and Helen Magnus roamed the streets of Dublin surrounding O'Connell's monument to set up surveillance. They believed that Comhghán was about to infiltrate himself on Beck's team or even impersonate him in front of life cameras. The last idea was the worst-case scenario and their only opportunity was to kidnap Comhghán/Glenn Beck in front of hundreds of people and mass-media.

A couple of hours later, the Irish security tighten and everything was set for Glenn Beck's appearance. The Gá team had four mobile CAT scanners. Two members infiltrated the Irish security and scanned Glenn Beck and his people, they were clean. Other three teams scattered in the crowed. Magnus and two Gá members were close to the stage; Thlasa, Neasa and another member were stationed further back on the right and the last Gá team was stationed on the left side of the stage.

Glenn Beck appeared on the stage and the crowed cheered. Gá teams began scanning people getting close to the stage.

"I can finally feel him, Comhghán is here, heads up everybody" said Thlasa through the walkie-talkies.

Neasa seemed to also be aware of her brother's presence. All they needed was to pinpoint his location.

Finally, they got lucky. One of Gá's teams found Comhghán with the help of the mobile CAT scanner. Everyone surrounded him, picked him up and put him into a van. They had an abandoned warehouse prepared on the outskirts of Dublin.

"My sister, how could you put these people to chase me down?" Comhghán said in a loud voice.

Neasa tried to defend herself, but Magnus stepped in.

"Comhghán, your sister was worried about you. We are a private facility that deals with gifted people like you. We just want to help, so does your sister."

"I'm not coming back…" Comhghán's voice was pleading.

"Comhghán, please, our parents are worried. These people are just trying to help us. They know a lot of things about us."

"I'm sorry Neasa, I don't want to get back home. I get bored there."

"We can offer you a place with us." Helen intervened. "You could use your powers to help others like yourself, people with many different abilities."

"Who are you?" Comhghán asked in disbelief.

"Allow us to show you our facility. It's safe; your sister has seen it. I'm sure you can be a valuable asset to our work" Helen emphasized.

Later that day, Comhghán was being introduced to Gá and its inhabitants. He was thrilled wondering the halls and talking to different species of abnormals. His place really was there so he accepted the offer. Neasa went back to her family to assure them that Comhghán wouldn't be a problem to their safety.

Helen Magnus was pleased with the outcome, another crisis avoided, another abnormal safe. She needed the case, as it was over, she needed to have another talk to Thlasa.

To be continued.


	5. Chapter 5

The final decision

"I missed working with you. I almost forgot the feeling." Thlasa smiled to Helen.

"Yes, indeed, we have always used the same methods", Helen smiled back to her.

"So, tell me about your staff, how are the Big Guy and Henry?"

"The Big Guy is as loyal as ever and a very good friend. I grew to depend on him for so many things. Henry has turned into a very smart man, he masters very well his abnormal side, he is training to be a better field agent and is very determined. The Big Guy teaches him new techniques almost every evening. Sometimes I even have to step in to remind them to take it easy." Helen paused; it felt like she was reporting a mission status to the boss.

Thlasa felt it. "You are not used to give personal information about someone... Tell me about Will."

"Will? He is my compass in everything I do, an indispensable asset to the Sanctuary network. He is doing a marvelous job assessing and guiding abnormals."

"I feel you are closer to him in a different way than with the others. What's going on with you and him?"

Helen raised her head, looking puzzled at Thlasa.

"There's nothing going on between the two of us. We are very good friends."

"That's all? I was actually hopping for more. You are still human; you need love in your life…"

"I admire Will very much, I actually don't tell him that enough. I love him for the kind of man he is, for the unique way he questions and understands everything around him. But there will never be anything else between us. I am too old for him; I have watched him grow up along the years until I considered he was ready to face my world."

"You never thought about him as a future lover?" Thlasa asked with disappointment in her eyes.

"No, I respect and love him as my friend. I am closer to him than everyone else because he succeeded in working his way up into my soul. He is so keen in understanding everything and that includes me. I am a challenge to him in a way that I think no one else has perceived me before. He actually behaves like you at the beginning, but you had the advantage of being an empath, he is still trying to decipher me with his intuitive skills. He has been figuring me out for quite some time now, but I still need some of my secrets to remain secret from others, including him". _Dear Will_, Helen thought without saying it aloud.

"You are a very impressive person even without secrets, Helen. I have known you for almost 68 years. It took me about 18 years to know everything there is to know about you, and I am still blown away when it comes to your strength and determination. Will is not going to get bored with you. I am convinced that you promised him from the beginning the adventure of many lifetimes, you had promised me also and you have always lived up to your promises. I am 83 years old and I am still wrapped up in this adventure."

"It is a matter of choice, Thlasa. A friendship can turn into a love affair, but a love affair can never turn back into a friendship. This is a threshold I do not want to cross. Will is too important to me to ruin our friendship with something that will eventually end with one or both of us being hurt, because there is no happy end for me as far as relationships with men with a normal live span are concerned. You can understand this, you are living this also."

"People grow, feelings change, visions change. We get more chances to love than everyone else does; we have the chance to eventually get it right. You are not just denying yourself the chance of happiness, but you are denying it to another person also. That's selfish and, Helen, that's a side of you that comes out rarely. Your life did not end when you discovered John's true side, neither did your right to happiness!"

Before Magnus could say something to contradict Thlasa, the younger woman continued.

"As far as I'm concerned, it's all worth it. Meeting great minds, living groundbreaking events, witnessing technological breakthrough are things that only people like us can experience. However, I also need to be remembered this things after someone dear dies and I have friends to remind me. You have friends also and I believe they do a very good job on raising your spirit."

"Yes, they do, most of the time", Helen said and her eyes darkened. She remembered the times when she was upset, hurting, or broken hearted and someone was always there for her: at first John, then James, after that Sally and the Big Guy and finally Will. But there were times when no one could help ease her pain.

"You will never come to terms with Ashley's death as long as you keep holding on to your pain", said Thlasa looking away from Helen.

"I don't want to accept that my daughter is gone, I need to hold on to my pain, that's the only thing keeping her alive in me".

"Then why did you come here?"

Helen then looked at Thlasa and saw her struggling to understand the mixed feelings coming toward her.

"I needed to know that you still feel me, that you can still share my life. I'm just being selfish"

"Helen, I owe you my life, I owe you my freedom. When you are happy I am happy, when you're sad I'm sad, when your heart breaks I can barely breath. I felt the fulfillment Ashley brought to your life when you gave birth to her; I could tell you how many times you stood on the roof of the Sanctuary thinking about the abnormals you couldn't save, because I felt your pain and anger, I felt your soul crushing when you lost James and then your daughter. I shared your every intense feeling; I even felt your continuing love for John until you decided that you had enough and closed that door on your heart. I also know that it didn't work, a love and a pain lasting a century don't just fade, but you know that too. I will always feel you and I will die the day I won't, your life is my life even from thousands of miles apart. How could you ever doubt that? I have lost many dear people and you were always there, you are my only steady point I can turn to. I miss you every single day, I have always felt you missed me too, but I know you, your need for independence, and your respect for other's independence, so I only left our relationship at your latitude."

"Why didn't you tell me about what John did to you?" Helen asked

"I know you felt I wasn't telling you everything, but you still loved him, it would have broken your heart, so I chose to leave instead. It seemed then the only possible choice. I couldn't see or talk to you without remembering his hatred and rage for you, for me, for our work. I felt him so strongly then and for the first time in my life I was afraid I would go insane. The physical torture was not that bad comparing to being exposed to his feelings. They were too strong and too dark to handle. He knew I was an empath and he held me for 18 days constantly exposing me to his dark side and I was afraid that I would eventually hurt you because of that. There were moments when I saw you and it was enough to hear him in my head telling me to kill you, feeling his hate until I was convinced I would one day do it. That was his plan all along, having me killing you. Therefore, I left the Sanctuary. For almost eight months, I have still felt him until I succeeded in severing the connection. How could I have told you that?"

"I could have helped you" was all that Helen could say.

"I know, but he would always be the love of your life that got away and I couldn't ask for your help, the price would have been too much for the both of us."

"Thlasa, it's time for you to come home", Helen said abruptly.

Thlasa thought many times about going back since Helen had got in touch with her, told her about Gá and proposed her to lead the facility, but could not bring herself to do it. She thought she had disappointed Helen and their relationship was too affected by past events to rekindle it to the same level of trust and warmth. Through the years, the contacts with Helen became a little more personal with each one, not just briefings about abnormals; personal questions were raised and answered. Unfortunately, Ashley's death was the event that brought the two women together again.

"What about my replacement?" Thlasa asked considering the offer.

"It's your decision. I will accept it." Helen answered quickly.

"I need a month to select and train a person and I will send you my reports".

"Very well". Helen smiled. "I will be waiting for you." She headed for the door, then turned

"Oh, I will be expecting Paul also, right? I think he will be perfect in the medical laboratory".

"How long have you known about my relationship with him?" Thlasa asked almost blushing. "I never felt you knew".

"There is a small degree of independent feelings I can keep out of the reach of your empath abilities. I have told you I need some of my secrets to remain secret from others. Some of those are meant to remain secret even to you. Now, care to revise your speech about you needing 18 years to know everything there is to know about me?" Helen plastered a majestic smile on her face.

"If you weren't older than me I would kick your butt right now!" was all that Thlasa could come up with.

"Watch your language, young lady!" said Helen and left Thlasa's office.

The end

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